A VERY FINE WHITE JADE 'ZHANG QIAN' PENDANT

Of rectangular form, carved to one side with a scholar aboard a raft atop rolling waves and inscription Chengcha fangdi sun, 'Riding on a raft to visit kings and offsprings', on the other side with a maiden seated before a weaving loom, the stone of an even white tone
2 in. (5 cm.) high

Provenance

Stephen Junkunc, III.

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Lot Essay

The inscription is an excerpt from a poem from the novel, Hong lou meng, 'Dream of the Red Chamber'. The scholar depicted is probably Zhang Qian of the Han dynasty who undertook an expedition on a raft to source the origin of the Yellow River by the commanded of Emperor Wu.